On Sept. 22, Pope Francis landed in the U.S., greeted by President Obama, first lady Michelle Obama and their daughters and Vice President Joe Biden in Joint Base Andrews. The Pope was greeted with such excitement, the crowd was cheering, “Hey, Hey. Ho, Ho. Welcome to the U.S.A.” This being the Pope’s first visit ever, the trip had a full itinerary for the six days.
President Obama held an official welcoming ceremony for Pope Francis on Wednesday on the South Lawn of the White House. According to a statement from the White House, the two sat down and talked their interests in caring for the poor, advancing economic opportunity, protecting religious minorities, promoting religious freedoms around the world and more. Thousands of people lined up on the sidewalks as Pope Francis paraded through downtown Washington in a Popemobile.
Later that day, he held a canonization of Junipero Serra at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception during mass. This is the U.S.’s first Hispanic saint. Junipero Serra, a Spanish friar known for starting nine Spanish missions in California in the 1700s, will be the first person to be canonized on U.S. soil. Although, he was canonized there has been a lot of debate on whether or not he deserved to be. Some believe his actions led to a destruction of tribal culture and thousands of deaths.
The following day was the most politically significant, in that he is the first pontiff to deliver a speech at the joint meeting of Congress. The Pope’s regards included messages about four significant Americans: Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Dorothy Day and Thomas Merton.
“I am most grateful for your invitation to address this Joint Session of Congress in “the land of the free and the home of the brave”. I would like to think that the reason for this is that I too am a son of this great continent, from which we have all received so much and toward which we share a common responsibility,” said Pope Francis.
He then headed off to New York where he spent a few days. At the ground zero site, he hosted a religious service in honor of those America lost. Over the next few days, he held Mass at Madison Square Garden and Cathedral Basilica of St. Peter and Paul, stopped at the United Nations General-Assembly, visited Our Lady Queen of Angels School in East Harlem, and more.
His last stop was in Philadelphia, where he planned many other events including a visit to Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility, a meeting with Bishops at St. Martin’s Chapel, St. Charles Borromeo Seminary and more. He left to go back to Rome on Sunday, Sept. 27.
